[Some of this information is way out of date] The "Salon" was proposed in early January of 2002 on the streetphoto mailing list. A topic is proposed (the first topic was "hair"; often, topics are abstract concepts), and participants submit their photographs (by posting a URL to the list) on Monday. A judge (normally the "winner" of the previous Salon) reviews the entries and picks a winner. Customarily, the judge not only picks one winner but several honorable mentions as well, and usually provides a brief critique of all the photos. One of the list members, Federico Ramírez Corona, maintains a comprehensive list of the entries. The Salon has produced some outstanding work and insightful critiques (which is typical for this list, which continues to inspire me with its uniformly high-quality photography and thoughtful criticism).
I never had anything remotely appropriate to submit until June,2002, when the topic was Patriotism. I thought it would be fun to delurk briefly and enter a picture. Since I've made a few more entries and even got a positive comment once.